An ordinary examinee noticed the commotion nearby.
Looking up, they saw Hisoka seemingly fighting with... nothing?
Normally, materialized Nen constructs are visible to ordinary people.
To this examinee, it looked as if Hisoka was throwing punches at empty air.
Yet the battle was undeniably intense. Flames burst out, shockwaves rippled through the air—evidence of a fierce exchange. But the opponent remained unseen to them.
The examinee's confusion quickly turned to unease.
"What's going on?"
"What is Hisoka doing?"
"Is he... crazy?"
Despite their doubts, something felt off. Hisoka wasn't just flailing at nothing—he was genuinely locked in combat.
A terrifying thought crossed the examinee's mind, sending a shiver down their spine.
"Could it be... haunted?"
Panic surged through them. "RUN!" they shrieked, bolting away.
Their outburst quickly attracted the attention of other candidates, who gathered to investigate.
...
Meanwhile, Hisoka trembled—not from fear, but from excitement.
He had estimated Kaizen's strength at 83 points before. But what Kaizen displayed now far exceeded his expectations. And Hisoka knew this was just a glimpse of Kaizen's true abilities.
A thrill ran through him. He craved more. He wanted to fight Kaizen at full power, without limitations.
Completely immersed in the battle, Hisoka grinned as he relished every second.
But just as he was about to lose himself further in the thrill, everything stopped.
Natsu's attacks ceased. Raiken's movements stilled. The aura of both Nen Beasts vanished instantly.
Hisoka's smile faded. This was frustrating.
He turned sharply toward Kaizen.
"Time's up," Kaizen said flatly.
Hisoka froze.
He had nothing to say in response. They had agreed beforehand—the fight would last ten minutes. Kaizen had simply stuck to the deal.
Still, Hisoka couldn't help but feel disappointed. He had just started to sink into the pleasure of the fight, and now it was over.
It was the same feeling as before—when he had found Kaizen in the Milo Wetlands, ready to strike, only for Kaizen to reveal his identity, preventing him from attacking.
That time, he hadn't even gotten the chance to fight.
This time was better—he had actually fought for ten minutes. But it still wasn't enough.
"Can we continue?" Hisoka asked.
"Do you have anything else like before?"
"No."
"Then next time. Let's talk when you do."
Kaizen was a pragmatic man. He didn't fight for the sake of fighting. And he certainly had no particular interest in entertaining Hisoka.
If Hisoka couldn't offer something of value, Kaizen saw no reason to continue.
"Fine," Hisoka said, though his regret was clear.
"Someone's coming," came Illumi's voice.
Without another word, he vanished into the shadows.
Kaizen followed suit, disappearing into the distance.
Soon, only Hisoka remained.
A group of candidates arrived at the scene, drawn by the earlier commotion. The fleeing examinee shouted about what they had seen, speculating wildly about ghosts or spirits. But by the time the others arrived, all they found was a calm and composed Hisoka.
There was no battle, no flames, no deafening impacts—only signs of destruction on the ground, remnants of a fight that had already ended.
Hisoka ignored them and walked away.
...
Kaizen's thoughts drifted as he dismissed his Nen Beasts.
"In addition to testing the properties of the liquid ore, this battle gave me a clearer understanding of my beasts' strength. They performed better than I expected."
He had underestimated them before.
But it was understandable—his past opponents had been powerhouses like Silva, Zeno, Dominica, and Achilles.
Silva and Zeno were obvious—both terrifyingly strong.
Dominica was a key figure in the Dragon Dojo, and Achilles was a prodigy from the Beast Dojo.
Among high-ranking Nen users, these were some of the top-tier fighters.
Back then, Kaizen had yet to gauge Hisoka, Illumi, or Chrollo's true strength.
Because of how they were portrayed in the past, he had unconsciously placed them in a higher tier than he should have.
Now, after a proper fight with Hisoka, he had a more grounded, realistic grasp of their abilities.
Even though Hisoka hadn't gone all out, neither had Kaizen's beasts.
Raiken's position-switching ability and the gravitational balancing technique hadn't even been deployed.
And despite that, Natsu and Raiken together had held their own against Hisoka.
So, what if Kaizen added another Nen Beast?
...
Kaizen still had Lantern Ghost, Killer Queen, Red Pupil, and Uchiha Sasuke at his disposal.
Even if Hisoka had more tricks up his sleeve, how would he handle being swarmed by so many powerful Nen Beasts?
Kaizen visualized the battle in his mind.
It didn't seem likely that Hisoka could endure it.
He didn't even need to strategize. He could simply let Natsu, Raiken, and Uchiha Sasuke attack.
Three Nen Beasts were more than enough to lock Hisoka down.
Once that happened, Lantern Ghost's ability could be activated.
If Hisoka's aura was cut in half, his strength would plummet.
At that point, would he even be able to avoid Killer Queen and Red Pupil's attacks?
If not, he would lose.
"Looking at it this way, my overall strength already surpasses Hisoka's."
Hisoka's only real chance was to target Kaizen's actual body.
But with his Nen Beasts restricting Hisoka, that wasn't happening.
And if needed, Kaizen could always retreat into the Sumas Space.
If that happened, Hisoka would be completely helpless.
Kaizen could simply wait inside until Hisoka was beaten into submission.
"In the end, the most crucial factor is still Natsu."
"With Natsu as a key piece, the rest falls into place..."
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